THE AMERICAN INTELLIGENTSIA 65

not only a background, but also a foreground, to
which the background is intimately related* Mr.
Wilson was clearly of this type, a student of
history and a man endowed with the historical
sense. But when Mr. Henry Ford, also a man
of powerful intellect, declares that " history is
bunk," he puts himself definitely outside the ranks
of the intelligentsia. Men of Mr. Ford's type of
intellect are common in American politics. Men
of Mr, Wilson's type are rare.

Lack of the historical sense is commonly said
to be the weak point of the American mentality
in general. I am not so sure of this. It would
be true, perhaps, if history consisted only of what
is written in books and if the historical sense, in
consequence, were based on nothing but
book-knowledge; but not true if the historical
sense betokens a feeling for the dynamic urge in
human affairs and a general habit of thinking in
terms of time. In this latter meaning, I think
the lack of it may be fairly cited as a weak point of
American politicians.

The same considerations apply, though in a
minor degree, to the American aristocracy, which
must never be confused with the intelligentsia.
That America has an aristocracy is sufficiently
evident to all observers who have more than a
superficial acquaintance with the country, an
aristocracy constituted, it is true, on lines
differently drawn from those of older countries,
and differently drawn in different parts of the